On Sunday, April 6, the final episode of season four of Shameless will be airing on Showtime. Boy, does time fly.
This season has had its ups and downs. Mostly downs, because it of course is the Gallagher household.
However, there have been some good times. Veronica and Kev finally had their two children, Ian came home and is shacking up with Mickey, Debbie had her first stalker relationship. What a time.
Let us not get too caught up, though. This season has been filled with more tragedies than some of the other seasons and have sent viewers through emotional turmoil.
After nearly killing Liam when he got into her cocaine and after she went on the lamb and broke probation, Fiona is in jail for 90 days.
The downfall of Fiona has been the most difficult storyline of this season. In the beginning of season four, Fiona was the hero.
She had her life together, she had a great job, the kids all looked up to her, she was dating a normal guy. But things can never be good for too long when it comes to the Gallaghers.
When viewers witnessed Fiona’s slow decline with the scummy brother of her stand-up boyfriend, we were angry with her. And when she left drugs out for Liam to get into, we wanted to kill her.
But then something happened. Fiona became a helpless puppy. When Lip turned his back on her and took Liam and the kids, my heart broke for her.
The scene in “Hope Springs Paternal (S4E8)”, after Fiona and Lip get into a massive argument, Fiona is left alone in the house, a rarity for the Gallagher household.
There are no children running around, Fiona has seemingly lost everything. After years of having to be strong for her younger siblings, viewers witness all of that pressure culminate at once as she breaks down while lying in her littlest brother’s bed.
The Gallagher kids have always been estranged from their father, but this season Frank was even more out of the picture. Suffering from liver failure, he had few options and his likelihood of surviving this season was pretty bleak.
Luckily for him, his long lost daughter Sammy was in the picture this season. His relationship with Sammy grows through season four, while the rest of his children go unnoticed. For the most part none of them care, except for Carl.
Poor Carl, he is following in his father’s dreadful footsteps and wants him to notice and think he is great, but Frank is too wrapped up in himself to care.
Viewers are so used to seeing Frank go through his struggles, that it comes as no surprise when he battles death this entire season.
Of course, last week he finally got his legitimate liver transplant after the underground surgery where they ended up stealing an organ.
Viewers should not be so surprised, though. What good are the Gallaghers without the looming presence of their dreadful father around?
The final episode does not look like it will be throwing out any surprises at us, but viewers never know what is going to happen next.
From the previews, it looks like Frank is going to be missing again, much like the ending of the last season and Fiona will only fall further in her demise.
Lauren Dwyer
Senior Features Editor